Transforming the Urban Environmental Aesthetics of the Nigerian City through the Introduction of Advanced GeoAI Technologies: Issues and Challenges
Ugochukwu Udonna Okonkwo
*
Department of Geography and GIS, Department of Computer Management and Information Systems, Southern Illinois University, Edwardsville, U.S.A.
Ezekiel Tosin Babatunde
Department of Environmental Sciences, Southern Illinois University Edwardsville, U.S.A.
Philip Ugbede-Ojo Onuche
Department of Chemistry, Department of Management and Marketing, Southern Illinois University, Edwardsville, U.S.A.
Enoh Martha Francis
Department of Geography and Geospatial Sciences, Oregon State University, U.S.A.
Paul Osazuwa
Illinois Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), United States.
Olumide S. Ogungbemi
Department of Geography and Geospatial Sciences, Oregon State University, U.S.A.
*Author to whom correspondence should be addressed.
Abstract
Nigeria’s economic diversification hinges on transforming its urban centers into aesthetically vibrant, sustainable hubs, moving beyond reliance on crude oil. Advanced GeoAI technologies—encompassing satellite imagery, predictive analytics, and real-time urban monitoring—offer transformative potential to redeem the environmental aesthetics of Nigerian cities, fostering tourism, employment, and foreign exchange. Cities like Lagos, once celebrated for their cultural and architectural heritage, now grapple with aesthetic decline driven by rapid urbanization, inadequate planning, environmental degradation, and socio-economic disparities. This article critically examines the challenges undermining urban environmental quality in Nigeria, focusing on hotspot cities like Lagos, Port Harcourt, Abuja, Kano, among others, as a case study, and identifies gaps in knowledge, infrastructure, and institutional support that exacerbate these issues. Key obstacles include limited geospatial data, high costs of GeoAI adoption, technical expertise deficits, and socio-cultural resistance to technology-driven urban interventions. Employing a multidisciplinary approach such as a systematic literature review, the study proposes novel contributions to innovative solutions, integrating sustainable urban planning, inclusive governance, public participation, and advanced geospatial technologies to restore and enhance urban beauty. It highlights the role of GeoAI in enabling precise urban design, green space optimization, and infrastructure monitoring, drawing on best practices from cities like Singapore and Kigali that have successfully revitalized their urban aesthetics. However, successful implementation in Nigeria demands robust policy frameworks, capacity building, and equitable technology access to bridge systemic inequalities. Through addressing these challenges, this article provides a new roadmap for policymakers, city planners, and stakeholders to leverage GeoAI for urban renewal, ensuring Nigerian cities reclaim their aesthetic allure while fostering economic and environmental resilience. This study's recommendations underscore that structuring Nigeria’s urban environmental aesthetics requires not only technological innovation but also a commitment to social equity and community-driven urban transformation.
Keywords: GeoAI, urban environment, spatial planning, greenspace infrastructure, deep/machine learning technology, ecological and environmental toxicology, smart cities, human dynamics